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Averra
Overview Averra, officially the Commonwealth of Averra, is a Francett speaking nation located on the Three Kings Sea in eastern Avanor. It is a constitutional republican state, having been so since the first Constitution of the Cross was signed, and enacted in 5 CE. Etymology EDIT ETYMOLOGY OF AVERRA History Averran history begins in the era of history generally referred to as The Dawn Age by most historians and scholars in academic circles, but more commonly referred to by the average person as The Beginning Times. During this era, the race we know today as the Dwarves populated the twin continents of both Avanor and Norrhan. The race called themselves Dwievier according to elven records from the time, however this fact has not been widely accepted within the academic community due to the possibly unreliable nature of the source from which the information came from. Regardless of what they called themselves, the race was the only sentient being to walk on the grounds of Arganorh in this period. The lands we know today as Averra were unpopulated during this era. The Dwarven race was a nomadic one, and the geographic nature of Averra being located in a valley surrounded by mountains and the sea was not compatible with a nomadic race. The lands of Averra grew into a large forest during this era. Several tools were found during an academic excavation of the rivers around Nyon that have been estimated to have been created during the Dawn Age. It is believed by several sources that these tools could have belonged to Dwarven hunters who moved into the valleys of Averra, but this theory has not been verified. When the First Era began, the population demographics of the region of Averra, or as it should be said the lack of population demographics, remained the same. The Dwarves still controlled the twin continents of Arganorh through the first half of this period. It was not until the middle of the First Era, around 2700 BCE, when the population of the Twin Continents began to change. This was the year that the Amyan elves reached the lands we know today as Jerrette. There were several kingdoms set up in this time frame by these elves, however no elves breached the many mountain ranges cutting off the lands of Averra from the rest of Arganorh. This was until the late 2600's when the first of the Amyan elves began to move into the region, building small villages along the rivers of the valley. These villages never unified into a single state like the elven kingdoms on the rest of the continents, however the feeling of independence from almost every kingdom or political authority gave the region a collective feeling of independence. The region, although never fully unifying, became known as "The Free State", while also never truly becoming a state at all. Villages and elven settlements in the region were completely independent from one another during this time frame, with even some major competition evolving out of the disputes between regions. In the Second Era, the Amyan Empire attempted to take the Free State for their own in the War of the Free State. Amyan troops, heavily trained, marched from their city in modern day Jerrette, attempting to cross the mountains. It would be the mountainous journey that would put an end to their invasion of the state. The archers of the Free States were able to kill the soldiers with bows and arrows throughout their trek, until, in the month of Frostfall, the armies froze to death in the narrow and icy mountain passes. It would be this "war" that gave the impression of Averra as an impenetrable mountainous land, which we have today. At any rate, through the second era, the lands of Averra would remain untouched by the elven empire. That would be until the landing of the human settlers on the continent of Arganorh in the beginning of the Third Era. In the year 52 CE, it is believed that a band of Jerretti settlers, separated from the main pack of their people who eventually founded Jerrette, proceeded into the southern mountain passes of the nation. It would be this crossing that would lead to the first successful crossing into Averra since the times of the Amyan landings. The humans found a nation that was pristine in its natural beauty, with mountains and forests, and many rivers, however just like their human brothers in other Arganorhan nations, they also met with (although much more limited) elven inhabitants. These human tribals agreed to settle the lands with the elven population already living there, forming what is known in history as the Agreement of Saint Marie's Day. Averra is still the only nation in the world to celebrate the holiday of Saint Marie in the middle of Highsummer each year. The nation would be settled and eventually the humans and the elves would build the city of Delénier together. There, they would develop the Delénier Constitution in the year 89 CE, which gave equal rights to the elves and humans of the nation. The constitution would also create, officially, for the first time, the Averran Confederation. The signing of the Delénier Constitution is still celebrated in the city of Delénier as the Constitution Festival. This government would be the first to introduce Averran neutrality and isolation from the rest of the continent, which they believed would protect the people from any international conflicts or outside influences. For the next few years, the elves of the nation would work to adopt many human customs. Many elves became bilingual in both Amyan and Francett, which still is the case today. Most elves also moved away from their traditional religions and adopted the human religions of the nation, especially more so when the Sanctumite religion took hold of the nation in the year 103 CE. Many cathedrals were built across the nation, and sanctumite holidays became the normal customs as everyone took off on these holidays to enjoy beautiful festivals, and still do today. The nation would continue to build cities, and each was more picturesque than the last one was. The nation opened itself up to regular trade at its port city of Nyon in the year 450 CE, allowing foreign goods into the nation, as well as visitors. However, by this point, the nation had developed a culture that was all its own, separate from anything else Arganorh had seen. It was during a mining expedition in the Ravenmounts that the gold deposits of the nation were found, enriching the isolated nation. International trade picked up, and living standards in the Confederation improved in this time. Averra became the homeland of the story of Little Charles-Baptiste, the boy who battled through the forests of the lands of Averra to find his bride, and partook in many grand adventures, from drinking the waters of the Blackclaw, to trekking through the mountains through the winter, to speaking to the faries of the island of Crowsperch. However this time of culture and peace came to an end when the Trader's Plague ravaged through the continent throughout the 700's and into the early 800's CE. Due to Averra's relative isolation from the outside, the nation was able to maintain its stability throughout the plague, although they did experience outbreaks in major port cities. It is rumored that there is an island off the coast of southern Averra where the Averran sick were placed, and left to die. Although there have been many remains found on Jessist Island, it is unknown if there is any validity to these claims that these were plague victims. Children's stories throughout the nation like to portray the island as an isle full of sick rotting zombies, who, angry at their ancestors for abandoning them on the isle, are thirsting to come back to Averra and bring an end to the nation, and bringing back the Trader's Plague. Regardless, during the Trader's Plague, Averra became the favorite among the world's wealthy to keep gold in store, due to its relative healthiness due to its isolation. After the plague ended, trade from the western ports of Davintharia picked up as new goods arriving from other continents boosted the economy. Things would change when, in the 1200's, the Kingdom of Jerrette would gain great shipping knowledge and greatly increase their ability to trade globally. This would only be for a century, for in the 1300's, Averra gained the same shipping knowledge. The Averran government ordered the creation of a merchant fleet off of the coasts of Crowsperch. It was also during this time that an Averran known as Ferrant Lémery called for the creation of The Charter of the Civil Liberties of the Citizen. He later authored it, and proposed it to the legislature, where it was accepted, making Averra the first nation in the world to adopt a law granting universal civil rights in the early 1300's. This charter called for the voting rights of women and men of all races, increased political debate, and overall freedom of information throughout the Confederation. It also guaranteed the basic rights that most nations agree upon today, such as freedom of religion, freedom of press, etc. The document also paved the way for the events towns in Averra La Grand Debat, which still takes place today. The first of every month, the town squares and townhouses are filled with citizens debating the political situation of the confederation. It was in the year 1387 that the current flag of Averra, the red cross on a while field, was designed by Elyot Charrier, giving it the nickname the Charrier Flag. The nation would have its official neutrality challenged when the nations of Amsterbourg, Middlewaard, and New Harlow would request it to join their new organization known as the League of Coins. This raised official questions on the stance of neutrality. Did it mean that Averra was to be completely isolated, or did it only apply to military affairs? The debate went through the nation, and it was decided that the economic opportunity could not be passed up. Averra joined the organization as a founding member in the year 1454. It would be during the end of this century and into the next that the industrial revolution would break out across Arganorh, and the League of Coins was there to take control. Averrans struggled with the idea of the industrial revolution, fearing it would severely alter their way of life. However, at the League of Coins's insistence, several cities such as Delénier, Alvevla, Nyon, and more had factories built and were further developed. This brought the nation into the stance of one of the most powerful economic manufacturing hubs in the continent. The League of Coins further helped the economy of its member nations by exploring through the world over the next two centuries. In the 1500's and 1600's there were trading outposts established on many continents around the world, such as Ryumar and Korasha. During this time, it would be that the city would be host to the Treaty of Nyon, which officially recognized the Nieder states as independent nations. In the years of the 1600's the Council of Coins was created and seated in the city of Dillon, which would serve as the capital of the League of Coins for the next century, bringing prosperity to Averra. In the year 1654, the elven writer Rasse Jacquinot wrote a book called "Loosing the Elven Identity" where he displayed that the elves of the nation of Averra had adopted so much of human culture that they were more human than elf. He showed this in his arguements that the Sanctum was almost universally worshiped, and most elves only knew Francett, and only a few bothered to learn Amyan. Jacquinot called for a literary and cultural revolution for the elves, and he got one. Called The Jacquinot Movement, several prominent elven writers also came out of this movement to call for increased elven individuality in Averran society. Geography EDIT GEOGRAPHY OF AVERRA Politics EDIT POLITICS OF AVERRA Demographics EDIT DEMOGRAPHICS OF AVERRA Economics EDIT ECONOMICS OF AVERRA Culture EDIT CULTURE OF AVERRA Category:Nation